I mentioned in my last podcast that I have a daily question in my journal for the Lord for which I want to discern an answer. I’ve since shortened it bit to this: Jesus, what did you teach me today that made this day better than yesterday?
Here was todays thought: Never accept any excuse whatsoever, under any circumstances, to do something you know is at variance with the deepest longing in your heart.
Is that even possible? Sure. We first give the Holy Spirit permission to remove all such excuses. Then, as often as they pop up, we make the split-second decision to say our firm “no!” to the excuse and the Holy Spirit will simultaneously remove it.
Does this require repetition? Sure. I don’t think anything can be gained in the Christian life without the perseverance of repetition anymore than a young man can get himself strong to play football while avoiding the dreary reps in the weight room.
However, it’s all a no-go if we haven’t identified and defined for ourselves just what the deepest longing in our heart is. The moment we responded to God's call in our lives, he changed our hearts, and deep within that change is a longing that corresponds to his unique vision of who he created each one of us to be. What’s yours? Is it on the tip of your tongue? I consider it absolutely critical to have that longing burning like a fire in our hearts and on instant recall.
Let me put it this way: if you want to know what thought-suggestions are lethal to your spiritual development, you have to have a firm grasp on what it is that you ultimately want. It is that vision that keeps you alert to what excuses must be met with an instant no upon which the Holy Spirit can sweep them away.
